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The hills are alive: La-Roche-en-Ardenne

Choosing where to walk in the Ardennes is not easy; there are so many wonderful areas to explore. But if you have never been to the Ardennes before, I would recommend La Roche-en-Ardenne. It’s an excellent place to start getting acquainted with this marvellous area of Belgium.

La Roche-en-Ardenne

One advantage of this location is that if you set off from Brussels in gorgeous weather and arrive in La Roche to find it pelting down with rain (which in the Ardennes is quite possible), then you can simply change your plan and visit one or more of the town’s museums: the Milling Museum, the Second World War Museum, the Pottery Museum, or even the Ardennes Ham Museum. The town also has a castle with a ghost, which conveniently appears every evening through the summer (although apparently not if it’s raining).

If you go to La Roche intent on a nature ramble, no matter what the weather, then first visit the tourist office on Place du Marché 15. Here you can choose from a wide selection of maps: walking maps, mountain-biking maps, horse-riding maps, even canoeing maps. I was keen to explore the river, so chose the River Ourthe walking map for 4.50 €. It has no fewer than 58 colour-coded walks of various lengths and difficulties. I selected the one marked “8 km, 4 hours, very difficult”, starting from Maboge. Here’s a small map of the route: Maboge walk

I was thrilled with it. It took me to the top of the world (or so it seemed), alongside the River Ourthe, and down enchanting forest paths. Just when I was beginning to wonder why it was classified as “very difficult”, I found out towards the end: an almost vertical clamber down through the woods to the riverside. (If you follow this walk, a word of advice: keep left at this point, it’s easier and less dangerous than if you drift right, as I did).

As to the nature, there is plenty to see and hear: kingfishers on the river, woodpeckers in the woods, buzzards in the skies, butterflies along the hedgerows. The highlight for me came when I was resting at the top of a hill: the amazing spectacle of a huge flock of cranes majestically soaring overhead on their annual northerly migration from Portugal and Morocco to their breeding grounds in Scandinavia.

La Roche-en-Ardenne is 90 minutes drive from Brussels via the E411, N4 and N89. By train, take the Brussels-Arlon-Luxemburg train, get off at Marloie and take bus no.15 to La Roche.

Look out for a dipper along the rivers

For the kids – Along fast-flowing rivers in the Ardennes, look out for a fascinating bird called the dipper. If you don’t know what it looks like, imagine a very fat dumpy robin, with a white breast instead of a red one. It’s fascinating because it feeds on water insects by walking upstream along riverbeds – completely submerged and using its wings to maintain balance. Also look for it bobbing up and down (hence its name) on boulders in the middle of the river.

Hi Paul, yes it’s a circular walk, described on the map as 8km long or 4 hours, although I seemed to take longer than that. There’s a good parking place right by the river in Maboge. I’m going to add a map with a few notes added to it, in the main post above (including the exact location of the car park). Enjoy your park. Let me know how it goes as it was quite a few years ago that I did this walk.

Hi Denzil, well, my wife Lucie and I tried this on Saturday and it was every bit as beautiful as you said. Some breathtaking views from the higher ground. The tracks were pretty muddy but the signs (and your instructions) made it easy to follow. It’s a good job we didn’t wait until Sunday with the snow! Unfortunately we (I) forgot the camera. We met a lovely man who has just bought the old cafe next to the car park and he is renting it out to canoeists and hikers. Thanks for all the help! Paul.

I was looking at the map and wondering why it was classed as ‘very difficult’ since the terrain doesn’t seem to be too different to the Peak District why I go walking, and blog about…so thanks for the explanation about the steep descent at the end.